Price marker for greeting cards and like articles



.1 1, 1942-. F. BOURKE I 2292,9124

PRICE MARKER FOR GREETING CARDS AND LIKE ARTICLES riled Jan 23, 1941 INVENTOR aran/r fiaurke. a J

I W'VI O Y Patented Aug. 11, 1942 PRICE MARKER FOR GREETING CARDS AND LIKE ARTICLES Frank Bourke, Kansas City, Mo., assignor to Hall Brothers, 1110., Kansas City, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Application January 23, 1941, Serial No. 375,580

6 Claims.

This invention relates to price markers particularly for use in connection with the sale and display of greeting cards and like articles sold with an enclosing envelope.

It is well known that greeting cards are difficult to mark satisfactorily. When the price is applied directly to the cartons, confusion arises because the customer does not always replace the card, after inspection, in its proper carton. When this difficulty is solved by application of the price directly upon the card or the envelopes enclosing them, the cards are disfigured and are apt to be soiled when the price mark is erased. The further method which has proved more satisfactory is to apply a price tag by means of a clip. to each individual greeting card, but even then the clips slip off and the tags are lost.

It is, therefore, a principal object of the present invention to provide a price marker which overcomes these difi'lculties in that the price marker is incorporated into the construction of the envelope and becomes a permanent part thereof during display of the greeting card but which may be readily detached after a sale has been made.

the clip which is used to attach the card to its envelope. 7

In accomplishing these and other objects of the invention, I have providedimproved details of structure, the preferred forms of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a greeting card attached to an envelope by a price marker and clip in accordance with the present invention, the card being shown open to permit reading of the sentiment printed thereon.

Fig, 2 is a perspective view of the card closed Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the removal of the price tag.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a partly formed envelope equipped with a modified form of price marker.

Referring more in detail to the drawing:

l designates a greeting card and 2 the envelope therefor. The greeting card I may be of any conventional design, but is here illustrated as formed of a substantially rectangular sheet of material folded transversely, as at 3, to provide as at 6, to provide leaves I and 8 adapted to hinge on the fold line 6 in the manner of a book. The outer face 9 of the front leaf usually carries a frontispiece I0 and the inner face of the leaf 8 carries the sentiment l l,

The envelope 2 is of conventional design, folded from a died-out blank to form a front portion l2, side flaps l3 and I4, and a bottom flap l6 which overlaps the side flaps and is secured thereto by an adhesive gum to form a pocket to accommodate the greeting card therein. The envelope also includes a closure flap IT to retain the greeting card for mailing.

When the cards are on sale, they are usually retained in open-faced cartons, in juxtaposed relation with their envelopes, so that a customer may remove a greeting card and its envelope for inspection.

' In' carrying out the present invention, I provide the envelope with a price marker l8 that is incorporated in the construction thereof and which, in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive, comprises an integral tongue or tab-like projection extending laterally from the side l9 of the bottom flap 56, as shown in Fig. 4. The tale may be of various shapes but is here shown as of elongated, rectangular form, having front and rear faces 20 and 21, parallel side edges 22 and 23, an end edge 24, and a fracture line 2 5 which may consist of a series of perforations to facilitate tearing thereof upon removal of the tab, as later described. The line of perforations substantially registers with the fold 21 of the adjacent side flap whereby, when the blank is folded to form the envelope as shown in Fig. 3, the tag projects from the end of the envelope at the corner thereof with the line of perforations 25 registering with the fold 21 of the side flap. The tab is then folded on the line of perforations so that the face 2| contacts the outer face of the bottom flap I6 and the edges of the tab lie within the boundaries of the envelope. The price may be written or printed on the face side 20 of the tab, as indicated at 28, and the tab may be printed with a trade-mark or other markings, as indicated at 29.

In order to retain the card affixed to the envelope during display thereof, the card is opened so that the fold edge 3 thereof may be projected under the tab with the side edge 22 thereof closely engaging within the crease of the fold 6 as shown in Fig. 1. A suitable paper clip 30 is then slipped over the folded tab so that the leaf 8 of the greeting card is clampingly retained against the back face of the envelope 2. the leaf 1 is folded against the leaf 8, the card and envelope are retained in compact relation, as shown in Fig. 2, so that they may be packaged with other units in a carton and displayed to the trade. It is obvious that the free edges of the tab are protected and covered by the front leaf 1 of the card so that they will not catch on the tab I8 or clip 30 of an adjacent card or other object that may cause disarrangement thereof. Since the tab bearing the price mark 28 is incorporated into the construction of the envelope and the card is attached to the envelope by the clip 39, the particular card is always represented by the price tab so that no confusion may arise as to price and quality of the card during the display period.

In opening the card, the customer grasps the lower diagonal corner of the card and envelope between the thumb and fingers of one hand and the front edge of the leaf 1 is grasped by the other hand to open the leaf without disarrangement of the card on the envelope. Owing to the fact that the edge 22 of the tab closely engages within the crease of the fold 6, and that the tag is retained in clamped contact with the envelope, opening of the card for inspection of the sentiment is facilitated.

The form of the invention shown in Fig. 6 is substantially the same as in the preferred form, with the exception that the price marker 3| is formed separate from the envelope and has a portion 32 extended between the gum face 33 of the bottom flap 34 and the face of the side flap 35 so that when the bottom flap is folded thereover the gum securely retains the marker therebetween. The end edge 36 of the bottom flap preferably extends in parallel relation with the line of perforations 31 when the flap is folded so that the perforated portion is located intermediate the edge 36 and the fold edge 38 of the end flap.

When the card is purchased, the merchant may remove the clip and tear the projecting portion of the tab along the line of perforations 25. Since the line of perforations 25 registers with the folded edge 21 of the envelope, this edge may be used as a straight edge in facilitating severance of the tab.

From the foregoing it is obvious that I have provided a price marker for greeting cards which cannot be lost or displaced and which retains the greeting card in orderly relation with the When I envelope without in any way damaging or disfiguring the card. It is also obvious that when the card is open, the price marker is directly exposed so that the purchaser may ascertain the price thereof at the time the sentiment is read),

Attention is also directed to the fact that when' the price marker is thus applied and the front' leaf 1 of the greeting card is folded against the back leaf 8, the frontispiece IE! is unobstructed by the marker.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with an envelope and an article juxtaposed against an outer face of the envelope, said article being subsequently adapted for enclosure in said envelope, a tab-like marker on said envelope and folded over and over-lying a portion of said article, and means extending overthe folded over marker to secure the article to said envelope.

2. In combination with an envelope and an article juxtaposed against an outer face of the envelope, said article being adapted to be subsequently enclosed in said envelope, a tab-like marker on said envelope and folded over and overlying a portion of said article, and a clip extending over said envelope and folded over marker to secure the article therebetween.

3. In combination with an envelope and an article juxtaposed against an outer face of the envelope, said article being adapted to be subsequently enclosed in said envelope, a tab-like marker projecting from a flap of said envelope and folded over and overlying a portion of said article, said tab being tearable on the juncture thereof with said flap, and means extending over the envelope and tab to secure the article therebetween.

4. In combination with an envelope and a greeting card juxtaposed against an outer face of said envelope, a tab on the envelope and folded over to overlie an edge of the juxtaposed greeting card, and a clip extending over said tab and envelope to secure the greeting card therebetween.

5. In combination with an envelope having a front portion and flaps forming a back portion, a greeting card juxtaposed against said back portion, a tab on an edge of one of said flaps of said back portion and folded over and overlying the greeting card, and a clip extending over the front portion of said envelope and over said tab for retaining the greeting card therebetween.

6. In combination with an envelope having a front portion and flaps forming a back portion, a greeting card juxtaposed against said back portion, a tab inserted between selected flaps of said back portion and having a free end folded over and overlying the greeting card, and a clip extending over the front portion and over said tab for retaining the greeting card therebetween.

FRANK BOURKE. 

